


Third Time's a Charm

by likehandlingroses



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: M/M, Season 7 AU, give and you will receive verse, there's a baby!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-22 00:45:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14297100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/likehandlingroses/pseuds/likehandlingroses
Summary: Just before the curse, Gideon gives his husband the ultimate gift. In Hyperion Heights, a newly awakened Rumple sees to it that his son’s generosity is repaid in full.





	Third Time's a Charm

Gideon’s fist clenched tighter around the white elephant with each passing second. The curse hadn’t reached them yet, but an eerie chill that stuck in his lungs permeated the house. Whether it was due to magic or fear, Gideon couldn’t tell.

“They’ll be here,” Belle said, her voice thin. No one responded. Alice drummed her fingers on the table top, and each tap made the room vibrate with nervous energy. One of Phoebe’s tiny hands rolled into a fist around a piece of Gideon’s sleeve, and he snuggled her closer in response.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “Daddy’ll be back soon.”

He chanced a glance across the table at his father, but Rumple looked like he might be sick. For the first time in his life, Gideon was in a position to understand why.

When the front door swung open, the whole room jumped, despite the fact that they’d been waiting for the Hood siblings for the better part of the evening. Alice cried out, and Robin rushed over to her. They might have been the only people in the room.

Gideon wished he could feel the relief that radiated off of Alice and Robin, but as Roland knelt down beside him and pressed his forehead to Phoebe’s, all he felt was guilt.

“Daddy loves you, okay? It’ll be okay,” Roland whispered. Gideon closed his eyes. He knew what he had to do.

“Roland--” he managed before his voice broke. Roland scrambled up from his knees and lifted himself up to meet Gideon’s eyes. One of his hands, still gloved, caught Gideon’s cheek.

“Hey…” he whispered. “It’ll be okay. We’ll find each other again. All of us.”

He reached out for Gideon’s hand, the one still hiding the elephant. Gideon pressed the figurine into Roland’s palm.

“It’ll keep the person you love most with you,” Gideon said, as Roland unfurled his hand and looked down at the elephant in confusion. “Father found a set--he gave one to Ella. And one to us. For Phoebe.”

“Oh, thank God,” Roland murmured. He moved to place the figure back in Gideon’s hand, but Gideon shook his head.

“I want you to have it. I want you to take care of her.”

As soon as he said the words, Gideon knew it was the right decision. Roland had lost so much already, and he was more frightened by the impending curse and what it might do to their family. Phoebe could manage with either of them, but Roland needed her more.

“No!” Roland insisted, though Gideon could see some light return to his eyes at the thought. “Your father gave it to you, to keep you together. I couldn’t—”

“—yes, you could. He gave it to me to help protect my family, and that includes you. So you take it.”

Roland didn’t need any more convincing. He recognized the gesture for what it was: a gift born of devotion and trust.

“I love you.”

Gideon brought a hand up to Roland’s curls, passing his fingers through them before letting his hand rest at the base of his neck.

“I love you, too,” he said, barely able to get the words out before Roland kissed him, fiercely. As though it might be the last time.

But it wouldn’t be, Gideon thought. They would find a way.

* * *

 

 

Since his reconciliation with Weaver, Alexander had grown increasingly comfortable with the idea of having a father who he got along with. He’d never thought it could be so easy, and yet there it was, right in front of him, getting better each day. He hadn’t even thought to say no when Weaver asked him to come over without telling him why. It only occurred to him when he was at his father’s door that he hadn’t the slightest idea what Weaver wanted to see him about.

The faintest hint of nerves creeping up on him relaxed when he saw Weaver’s wide smile as he opened the door.

“Alexander...come in, come in…”

As Weaver shut the door behind him, Alexander caught sight of a little girl clinging to his father’s pants leg. She was hardly more than a baby, Alexander guessed, though he didn’t know anything about children. He certainly didn’t know why his father had one in his apartment.

“Who--?” he began, but Weaver interrupted.

“This is Olivia,” he said. “Her father is, ah—he’s working with me, and the daycare arrangements haven’t been finalized.”

Olivia gave a cry, and Weaver snatched her up in his arms with a look of joy Alexander didn’t think he’d ever seen on his father’s face before. He felt the sudden urge to leave the apartment.

“I just need you to watch her for an hour—Tilly will be here at noon,” Weaver said, not even looking at Alexander, he was so enamored with Olivia.

“Dad, I’m not sure I can,” Alexander said, averting his gaze. “I’m exactly not good with—”

“Papa!” Olivia stretched herself out towards him, and Alexander felt a wave of fear rush over him, for reasons he couldn’t explain. He took a step back, then immediately felt silly for doing so.

“Oh,” he said with a forced laugh. “So I look like her dad, is that it?”

“I’m not sure I’d say that.” Weaver had a strange look in his eye, now. He was happy, Alexander guessed. But it was something else too, something he didn’t understand. “But children...they see things we don’t, sometimes.”

He gave Olivia’s hand a kiss before setting her back down on her feet.

“Well, I’d better be going. I’m late as it is.”

What had transpired was so odd, so discomforting, that Alexander found himself unable to say anything until Weaver was halfway out the door.

“Wait, Dad! I—"

“—Tilly will be here at noon!” he said, not even bothering to look back.

“Great,” Alexander whispered as the door clicked shut. Olivia had toddled over to his leg and was tugging on his pants, just as she’d done to Weaver a moment ago.

“Up!” she cried.

“Not just now,” he said, looking down at Oliva in frustration. But her wide brown eyes and fat little cheeks tugged at something inside of him he hadn’t known existed.

“...alright,” he sighed, taking her up in his arms. “Just for a minute.”

As soon as she was up, Olivia began to bounce in excitement. She giggled before laying her cheek on Alexander’s shoulder and placing one of arms about his neck. Some kind of instinct led Alexander to place a hand on her downy dark hair. He felt like weeping; he didn’t know why. Perhaps he wouldn’t mind having a child, after all.

He moved to Weaver’s couch and sat down with Olivia still cradled in his arms. As soon as he’d settled in, Olivia lifted her head and babbled some sort of nonsense, then waited with an expectant grin.

She wanted to talk. Alexander had read something once about how you had to talk to babies, or else they wouldn’t learn all their words. Panicking, he tried to think of something to say.

“It’s exciting, being someplace new, isn’t it?” he said, trying desperately to sound excited and engaging. Olivia laughed and grabbed at his collar.

“Papa!” she cooed.

“You like that word, don’t you?” Alexander said, this time not feeling any anxiety at Olivia’s proclamation. It felt right, somehow. “It’s fun to say, huh?  I’ll bet it gets you quite a lot of attention, too.”

He reached out a finger to brush the back of her chubby little fist, and she snatched the finger up and squeezed it tight.

“Papa!”

Alexander felt the room spin for the briefest of moments, and then Gideon remembered.

He very nearly burst into tears at the sight of Phoebe safe and sound in his arms, but he didn’t want to frighten her. A few shaking breaths and the thought that they were that much closer to breaking the curse was enough to calm him. He pressed his lips to Phoebe’s forehead.

“Papa’s here,” he whispered. Phoebe spouted off a few unintelligible, precious utterances, and Gideon chuckled.

“Grandpa’s something else, isn’t he?” he said, bouncing Phoebe in his arms. “Leaving us right when he knew things would get interesting. What are we gonna do with him, Phoebe? What are we gonna do with Grandpa?”

“Yeah!” Phoebe said.

“...you’re right,” Gideon said, kissing one of her hands. “You’re absolutely right.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! This is a follow-up to "Give, and You Will Receive" and "Too Alike." Most of the prompts I fill for this 'verse should be able to stand on their own, but if you are interested in reading more from this verse, go ahead and click on the "give and you will receive verse" tag...and you should be able to find anything else I've written in this Season 7 AU.


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